The Bossier banner., 1887-08-04
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
The Importance Of Little Things
Ably Demonstrated.

Great Results That Como About in Our
Lives Through Apparently Insignifi-
cant Incidcnts-The Unknown He
e. - roes and Horoines of tho World.
Rev. T. Dewitt Talmage and large
portion Of his congregation made their
annual pilgrimage on the I'd inst, to
Martha's Vineyard, Mass, and on the
Sabbath Mr.. Talmage preached to them
and thousands Of others in the great
camp-meeting tabernacle His text was:
Through o window. in basket 1 was let
down by the wall.-H Cor. XII, &c.
- He sail: Sermons on Paul in Jail, Paul
on Mars Hill, Paul in the shipwreck, Paul
before the Sanhedrim, Paul before Felix
are plentiful. but in my text we have
Paul in basket.
Damascus is a city of white and glisten-
ing architecture, sometimes called the
seye Of the East" sometimes called ga
pearl surrounded by emeralds," at one
time distinguished for swords of the best
material known as Damascus blades, and
upholstery of richest fabrics calle1 dam
asks. A horseman by the name Of Saul.
riding toward the city, had been thrown
from the saddle. The horse had dropped
under flash f.om the sky, which at the
same time was SO bright it blind
ed the rider for many .days,
and, ! think, so permanently in
Jured his eyesight that this defect
of vision became the thorn in the flesh
he afterwards speaks of. He started for
Damascus to butcher Christians, but
after that hard fall from his horse he was
a changed man and preached Christ in
Damascus till the city was shaken to its
foundation. @ 90
The mayor gives authority for his ar
rest, and the popular cry is: "Kill him!
kill himP'
The city is surrounded by high wall,
and the gates are watched by the police
lest the Cicillian preacher escape. Many
OF tho houses are built on the wall, and
their balconies projected clear over and
lowered above the gardens outsi lie. 1t
was customary to lower baskets out of
these balconies and pull up fruits and flow-
.ers from the gardens To this day visitors
az the monastery Of Mount sina are lifted
and let down in baskets. Detectives
prowled around from house to house look
ing for Paul, but his friends hid him,
now in one place, now In another. He is
no coward, as fifty incidents in his life
demonstrate. But he feels his work is
not done yet, and SO he evades assassina-
tion.
ssIs that preacher here?" the foaming
mob shout at one house door. rs that
fanatic hereln the police shout at another
house door.
Sometimes on the street incognito he
passes through a crowd of clinched fists,
and sometimes he secretes himself on the
~1use.top. At last the infuriated popu-
lace get on sure track Of him. They have
positive evidence that he is in the house
OF one of the Christians, the balcony Of
whose home reaches over the wall.
'Here he is Here he is!''
The vociferation, and blasphemy, and
bowling Of the pursuers are at the front
door. They break in.
Fetch out that Gospelizer and let US
hang his head on the city gate. Where Is
hea'
The emergency was terrible. Provi-
dentially there was a good stout basket
in tie house. Paups friends fasten rope
to the basket Paul steps into it. The
basket is lifted to the ed ye of the balcony
on the wall, and then, while Paul holds
on to the rope with both hands, his
friends lower away, carefully and eau
tiously, slowly but surely, further down
and futher down, until the basket strikes
the earth and the apostle steps out and,
afoot and alone, starts on that famous
missionary tour, the story of which has
astonished earth and Heaven. Appro-
pirate entry in Paups diary Of travels:
Through , window, in basket, was I let
down by the wall.
Observe, first, ON what a slender tenure
great rest ults hang. The ropemaker w ho
twisted that cord fastened TO that lower.
ing basket never knew how much would
depend upon the strength of it. How II
it had been broken and the apos ties life
had been das he'd QUIT What would have
become OF the Christian Churchl All
that magnificent missionary work in
Pamphilia, Cappadocia, Galatia, Mace
donia, would never have been accom-
plIshed. All his writings. that make uI
so indispensable and enchanting a part OF
the New Testament. The story Of the
resurrection would never nave been sc
gloriously told as he told it, That example
Of heroic and triumphant endurance
at Philippi, in the Mediterranean Euro
clydon, under fagell alton and at his be-
heading, would not have kindled the cour.
age OF 1000 martyrdoms. But that rope
holding that basket, how much depended
on 1t! So, again and again, greater re-
suits have hung ON what seemed slender
circumstances.
Did ever ship Of many thousand tons
crossing the sea, have such an impor tan
passenger as had once q boat of leaves
from tafrail to stern only three or four
feet, the vessel made waterproof by a Goa
OF bitumen, and floating on the Nile with
the infant law-giver Of the Jews on boards
What II some crocodile should crunch It'll
What ii some Of the cattle wading In fol
drink should sink itl Vessels of wal
sometimes carry forty guns, looking
through the portfolios, ready to oper
battle. But that tiny craft on the Nile
seems to be armed with all the guns o
thunder that oombarded Sinai at the law
giving. On how fragile craft sailed
how much OF historical importancel
The parsonage at Epworth, E ngland, i.
on fire In the nigh t, and the father rushed
through the hallway for the rescue of hi:
children. Seven children are out and saf,
on the ground, but one remains IN tn,
consuming building. That one wakes
and finding his bed on fire and the build
ing crumbling, comes to the window, anl
two peasants make q ladder of thei
bodies, one peasant standing on thu
shoulders OF the other, and down the hu
man ladder the boy descends-John Yves
lew